Megan McArdle's 12 rules for life

January 30, 2018 10:36 PM

Making yourself feel bigger by making someone else feel small takes so little skill that 12-year-olds can do it. Those with greater ambitions should leave casual cruelty behind them.

Be kind.

Making yourself feel bigger by making someone else feel small takes so little skill that 12-year-olds can do it. Those with greater ambitions should leave casual cruelty behind them.

Photo: Dougal Waters/Getty Images

Be kind. Making yourself feel bigger by making someone else feel...photo-14967880.178035 - |ucfirst

Politics is not the most important thing in the world.

Very few of the things that irritate you or bring you joy have anything to do with the government. So keep some perspective about politics. It doesn’t matter as much as the real people around you, and the real things you can do in the world. If you have to choose between politics and a friendship, choose the friendship every time.

Nine times in 10, you’ll be bored and go home early. But the 10th time, you will have a worthy experience or meet an interesting person.

Go to the party even when you don’t want to.

Nine times in 10, you’ll be bored and go home early. But the 10th time, you will have a worthy experience or meet an interesting person.

Photo: Jose Luis Pelaez Inc/Getty Images/Blend Images

Go to the party even when you don’t want to. Nine times in 10,...photo-14114212.178035 - |ucfirst

Save 25 percent of your income.

I have spent basically my whole life in New York and Washington, DC. You can save if you want to; what you really mean is “There are all these things I want more than financial security.” And you’re right: You do want them more than financial security right now.